When Rap Pretends to be Hip Hop

Up to what point can Hip Hop music transform, change, be remixed and experimented upon until it is no longer Hip Hop music? That's the question a friend and I were trying to answer during a heated conversation about the state of rap and which new artists claim to have a stake in this art form.

Up to what point can Hip Hop music transform, change, be remixed and experimented upon until it is no longer Hip Hop music? That’s the question a friend and I were trying to answer during a heated conversation about the state of rap and which new artists claim to have a stake in this art form. While we both came to a satisfactory conclusion which I’ll share later, our discussion raised many interesting points that I felt would be best discussed in a public forum. This is ultimately the purpose of a platform like RapRehab.

However, things tend to get sticky right from the start of the discussion. First of all, is Hip Hop music even the same as rap music? Since the culture’s birth, it is true that Hip Hop has always incorporated elements from all musical genres, whether it’s B-boys breakin’ to R&B breaks or MC’s rhyming over rock beats. Hip Hop has no qualms about its various influences which can be heard in the diversity of samples used in rap music over the years. But purists like myself believe that, technically, anyone can rap if rapping is simply the act of rhythmically speaking in rhymes over a beat. To this point, anyone from the Rappin’ Granny to Dolly Parton has the ability to rap. But does that make them Hip Hop? Absolutely not. Therefore, we can easily dismiss the notion that all “rappers” are automatically Hip Hop artists. So what is that magical ingredient that makes a rapper, Hip Hop?

In a nutshell, not only does one need actual talent and an understanding of the various mechanisms of the art of rap but one must also have invested time in Hip Hop culture as an active participant. This means that they’re either a practitioner of one or more of the elements of the culture or at least a subscriber to the ideals, philosophy, and lifestyle traditionally associated with Hip Hop. With this in mind, it’s easy to understand how someone can rap without being “Hip Hop”.

After all, would you call someone a country singer simply because they’re wearing a cowboy hat and clumsily strumming away on a guitar? Would a vacation to India, a couple of books on Eastern Philosophy, and Saturday yoga classes be enough to call someone a mystic? Should the drunk guy doing bad karaoke with his college friends now be considered a singer because he has the liquid confidence to “perform” in front of a crowd without vomiting on himself? Can Paris Hilton now be called a legitimate DJ because she’s getting paid to play “prerecorded” mixes at clubs around the world? Can a part time opinionated blogger with virtually no followers expect to receive the same level of respect as an award-winning journalist who’s interviewed presidents and international decision makers? No, no, no, no, and no! It takes time, talent, dedication, commitment, and growth to be considered credible, if not a flat out expert, at any given discipline. Why shouldn’t it?

Simply because Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, and other pop celebrities have decided to try their hand at rapping, doesn’t make them “Hip Hop”. Just because someone is speaking a certain way or wearing certain clothes doesn’t automatically give them a pass to claim as theirs something they haven’t dedicated their life to…no matter how many other lame ass rappers co-sign their foolishness.

So, up to what point can Hip Hop music transform, change, and be experimented upon until it no longer qualifies to be called Hip Hop music? Simple – up to the point where the person making the music has no investment in its rich history and cultural preservation.

Rap destroys the minds of our youth i see it all the time and was a victim.. Hip hop is has been hi jacked. We r at that point this articles points out.. up to the point where the person making the music has no investment in its rich history and cultural preservation.

Rap has been impersonating Hip Hop for years but rappers can never impersonate EMCEES. Originality, Creativity, Style, Finesse, and the internal drive to be better than the best is what Hip Hop is. Intelligence, and enlightenment, were used in every aspect of Hip Hop expression from Graph to B-Boying to Emceeing to DJ’ing. Hip Hop fashion suffered the same fate. I was recently recalling how in the early eighties in NY we used to put food coloring in white shoe polish and customize our suede Pumas, Shell Toes, and Nikes . Now Puma, Nike, and Adidas can all be bought off the rack with the styles Hip Hop created. True Hip Hoppers are open minded creative expressionists who aren’t afraid to be original. We are always thinking “How can I elevate the game and raise the bar?”. How can I demonstrate my uniqueness in a creative art form that will garner respect and honor the culture and those who influenced me? There is no honor or real respect in rap culture. There’s no elevation unless you’re talking about the ever growing level of ignorance in rap. Rap is allowed to thrive because it’s ignorant, negative, and criminal subject matter is an effective tool to keep the “crabs in the barrel” and fill the jails and dumb down the public. The plan is successful up to the point where kids from the burbs started to mimic and adopt rap culture. But the difference is they have the means to get pardoned for their trespasses and infractions while no matter how much cream these rappers amass they will always be looked at as the Niggas they like to call themselves in every sense of the word and however you want to spell it.

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